Fewer Michigan college students getting need-based grants

A new study finds the number of state financial aid grants distributed in Michigan is falling, and that's making it harder for college students to come up with tuition.

That's especially true for poorer students in Michigan.

Karen Holcomb-Merrill is with the Michigan League for Public Policy, which looked at the pattern of grants over the past decade.

"At the same time as we're seeing rising tuition costs, we saw that need-based grants plummeted 20 percent here in Michigan," Holcomb-Merrill says. "And at the same time, at the national level, those need-based grants overall have risen about 84 percent."

"When it's become more difficult to pay college costs, the state and policymakers have made decisions that have made it more difficult for low-income students in particular to be able to get a good education."

She says Michigan ranked 40th in the percentage of students receiving financial aid grants. Unlike student loans, need-based grants don't have to be repaid.